Sports News Roundup: Olympics-Appeals could further delay awarding of figure skating gold to US; Tennis-Stung into action, Alcaraz flees the bees at Indian Wells and more

After two years of legal wrangling the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled in January that teenager Kamila Valieva, a member of the Russian squad, receive a four-year doping ban that elevated the U.S. to gold and Japan to silver. Tennis-Stung into action, Alcaraz flees the bees at Indian Wells Carlos Alcaraz said he surprised himself by staying focused despite being stung on the forehead at Indian Wells on Thursday after the Spaniard's quarter-final against Alexander Zverev was interrupted by a swarm of bees.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

NHL roundup: Brayden Point's 6 points lead Lightning past Rangers

Brayden Point netted his fourth career hat trick during a career-high six-point night as the Tampa Bay Lightning roared back in the third period against the visiting New York Rangers, topping the visitors 6-3 on Thursday night. Point produced three goals and three assists as the Lightning stormed back from a 3-2 third-period deficit with four unanswered goals.

Spring training roundup: Casey Mize, Tigers cruise past Yanks 7-0

Casey Mize outpitched Marcus Stroman as the Detroit Tigers rolled to a 7-0 victory over the visiting New York Yankees in spring training action Thursday in Lakeland, Fla. Mize (2-1) allowed two hits, walked two and struck out four over four innings, while Stroman (0-2) gave up five runs (four earned) and seven hits with three walks and four whiffs in 4 1/3 innings.

Olympics-Appeals could further delay awarding of figure skating gold to US

Awarding of the 2022 Beijing Olympic figure skating team gold to the United States after Russia was stripped of the medals for doping could be delayed by appeals, said U.S. Olympic officials on Thursday, putting plans for a Paris celebration in jeopardy. After two years of legal wrangling, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled in January that teenager Kamila Valieva, a member of the Russian squad, receive a four-year doping ban that elevated the U.S. to gold and Japan to silver.

Tennis-Stung into action, Alcaraz flees the bees at Indian Wells

Carlos Alcaraz said he surprised himself by staying focused despite being stung on the forehead at Indian Wells on Thursday after the Spaniard's quarter-final against Alexander Zverev was interrupted by a swarm of bees. The world number two was serving in the third game of the match when the bees descended upon him. The 20-year-old tried swatting them away with his racket but eventually ran for cover after being stung.

Tennis-Alcaraz dodges bee invasion to set up Sinner semi at Indian Wells

Carlos Alcaraz looked back at his best as he swatted aside a swarm of bees and world number six Alexander Zverev to reach the semi-finals at Indian Wells on Thursday, setting up a clash with the in-form Jannik Sinner. The world number two took the interruption to clear the bees from the court in his stride before racing past Zverev 6-3 6-1 in little more than 90 minutes to keep his title defence on track.

NBA roundup: Thunder take advantage of short-handed Mavs

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the visiting Dallas Mavericks 126-119 on Thursday. The Mavericks were without superstar Luka Doncic, who experienced left hamstring soreness in Dallas' win over Golden State on Wednesday. Dallas had its four-game winning streak end.

Olympics-COVID casts long shadow over New Zealand paddler Jones

The Paris Olympics will be free of the strict COVID-19 restrictions that overshadowed the Tokyo and Beijing Games but New Zealand canoe slalom trailblazer Luuka Jones might be forgiven for taking extra precautions with her health. The 35-year-old's ambitions of reaching a fifth Olympics once seemed fanciful as she spent more than a year recovering after being diagnosed with COVID in early 2022.

Tennis-Error-prone Gauff, Swiatek into Indian Wells semis

Third seed Coco Gauff served up 17 double faults but still managed to beat China's Yuan Yue 6-4 6-3 at Indian Wells on Thursday to reach the semi-finals in the Californian desert for the first time. A day after her 20th birthday, Gauff had to rally from 3-1 down in the second set before setting up a clash with ninth seed Maria Sakkari, who ended American Emma Navarro's run with a 5-7 6-2 6-4 victory.

Baseball-MLB star Ohtani shares photo of wife as Dodgers arrive in South Korea

Major League Baseball star Shohei Ohtani shared photographs of his new wife for the first time on Friday before the couple arrived in South Korea with the Los Angeles Dodgers ahead of their MLB season opener next week. There has been widespread speculation over the marital status of Ohtani, the dual-threat MLB star and a national hero in Japan. The identity of his wife was a hot topic across Japanese print and social media on Friday after pictures emerged showing the couple together for the first time.

Report: San Diego Wave being sold for league record $113 million

The San Diego Wave is being sold in a deal that places the club's value at $113 million, Sportico reported Thursday. Billionaire Ron Burkle is selling the club to the Levine Leichtman family in a two-part deal that could later place the transaction at $120 million.

(With inputs from agencies.)